In the second week of April, I’ll be attending or participating in threeFOURFIVE events in Houston: A Liar’s Contest, Houston Indie Book Festival, a Film Premiere, and an Energy/Environmental Conference. Details for attending these events is below. (Note: the Movie Premiere is Thursday, the conference is Friday and the Liar’s contest/booksale & book fest is Saturday — even though I listed everything in reverse chronological order). Drop me a line if you think you’ll be at one of these events!

24th Annual Liars’ Contest: Live Storytelling Event

(I’ll be telling a story for this one)

Saturday, April 14, 2012 7:00pm

Houston Baptist University 7502 Fondren, Houston, TX 77074

Ticket are $10 ($8 for HSG members). Various storytellers from Houston tell Tall Tales and compete for a prize (I hear it’s $100,000). I’ll be telling a story about breakfast. At Mabee Theater at HBU. 7502 Fondren. More details here http://www.houstonstorytellers.org/

Houston Indie BookFest (Saturday)

The 2012 festival will be on Saturday, April 14 from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.. The event is completely free and open to the public and remains the only one of its kind in the Houston and Austin areas, featuring a variety of nationally-distributed literary journals and small-press books alongside local booksellers, book and magazine publishers, small presses, literary organizations, and writers.

I’ll probably be at the reading and panel discussion after about 2:00 PM until about 4:30 PM.

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC! Sunday is “Bag Day” at $10 per bag (bags provided).

Texas Tribune Symposium on Energy and the Environment

TribLive: The Texas Tribune Events Series
The Texas Tribune Festival On the Road: A Symposium on Energy and the Environment

Event description is here. This daylong program of lectures, panel discussions and conversations will explore federal energy policy as it impacts the state of Texas, state policy as it impacts communities like Houston, the promise of clean and renewable energy in all its forms and the impact of one of the largest shale plays anywhere on the economic and environmental health of South Texas.

The Preacher’s Daughter” Screening/Benefit for SWAMP

Michelle Mower, a local writer/director who used to run Southwest Alternate Media Project, is having her movie premiere of the “Preacher’s Daughter” next week. It’s open to the public. Here’s the info:

The screening will take place on Thursday, April 12th at 7pm at the historic River Oaks Theater in Houston, Texas. There will be an after party immediately following the screening at Marfraless (located directly behind the theater) http://www.marfrelesshouston.com/

Thursday, April 12, 2012 7:00pm until 10:00pm

Price: $10 – General Admission; Discounts available for seniors and students

Film Synopsis:
The estranged daughter of a small town minister is forced to return to the strict, religious home of her youth where she must confront the troubled relationships that caused her to leave four years before.

The film was shot in and around the Houston area and features a number of local talent – many of whom will be in attendance.

We will be screening the 101 minute “director’s cut” of the film. This will likely be the only time this version of the film will be seen by the public. ***Please note: the film has strong language and mature themes that may be considered inappropriate for children.***

Come watch the film that everyone has been waiting for and meet some of the cast and crew. Don’t miss it!

Proceeds from the screening will benefit Southwest Alternate Media Project (SWAMP), a 35-year old non-profit media arts organization based in Houston. http://www.swamp.org/